Hyundai, Kia take crown as Saudi Arabia’s best-selling cars in H1

Hyundai Motor Co. and Kia Corp.'s subcompact models took the top two spots in Saudi Arabia’s automobile market in the first half of this year as they expanded lineups of small sedans, popular with local drivers, as part of a localized strategy.

The Hyundai Accent was the best-selling car in the kingdom in the January-June period, with 19,081 units sold, according to automobile industry sources on Sunday.

The Kia Pegas ranked second with sales of 15,528 units.

By brand, the two South Korean carmakers under Hyundai Motor Group ranked second and third in sales in Saudi Arabia.

Hyundai Motor Group's total sales in the country reached 96,159 units in the first half, closing in on market leader Toyota Motor Corp., which sold 118,022 units.

Saudi Arabia is the largest automobile market in the Middle East, with 840,000 vehicles sold in 2024, accounting for a third of the region's total sales of 2.49 million units.

To accelerate its foray into the Middle East, Hyundai Motor is set to build its first plant in the region – Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Middle East (HMMME) – in the King Salman Industrial Complex in Saudi Arabia.

The plant will assemble imported parts using the complete knock-down (CKD) method to produce up to 50,000 internal combustion and electric vehicles annually.

The facility, backed by Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund Public Investment Fund (PIF), is set to begin production in the fourth quarter of 2026. 

Hyundai Motor Group will broaden its footprint in the region beyond mobility to hydrogen and other energy sectors in collaboration with PIF, said a Hyundai Motor Group official.

Write to Bo-Hyung Kim at kph21c@hankyung.com
 

Yeonhee Kim edited this article.